Soggy Bun Aside, There's Still a Lot to Like at Square 1

By ERIC PERATHE LEDGER

Wednesday

Jun 24, 2015 at 9:41 PM

I wasn't expecting this, not with a plain-Jane handle like Square 1 Burgers & Bar. Lakeland's newest destination for adult beverages and brawny burgers with gourmet fixings is a wild, wooly, hoot of a place given to cowhide chic with overtones of bawdy, upscale saloon.

I wasn't expecting this, not with a plain-Jane handle like Square 1 Burgers & Bar. Lakeland's newest destination for adult beverages and brawny burgers with gourmet fixings is a wild, wooly, hoot of a place given to cowhide chic with overtones of bawdy, upscale saloon.The focal point is, after all, a gleaming, stone bar, where one can sip a classic Manhattan paired with arresting, smoked wings, glazed in a sweet, tangy barbecue sauce, and, perhaps, egg rolls stuffed with an excellent pulled pork.And not that you would, but you could take happy hour a step further with the house Woo Hoo fries, drenched in beef gravy a'la poutine, substituting jack cheese for fresh curds.Square 1 is deftly nestled at the south end of the newly remodeled complex anchored by Claussen's Fine Furniture on South Florida Avenue.The restaurant, ninth in a small, growing Tampa-based chain stretching from Fort Myers to Gainesville, is owned by Joanie Corneil, her husband Ray Leich, and her ex-husband, Bill Shumate.Corneil and Shumate co-own the enduring Bella's Italian Cafe on South Howard Avenue in Hyde Park. They opened the original Square 1 in South Tampa in 2008, a concept based loosely on Shumate's past — he opened a burger "joint" across from the University of Oklahoma in 1964. The new concept finds Shumate going back to square one.The trio brings plenty of cred to the table. Shumate was named the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association's 2014 Restaurateur of the Year. Leich, an accountant, has been a partner in a franchisee that operates 31 Outback Steakhouse and 3 Bonefish Grill restaurants, according to Nation's Restaurant News.Lakeland's Square 1 opened a mere three weeks ago, but with all that history, one would expect the place to hum on all burners fresh out of the gate. And for the most part, everything does. But a few missteps during several visits deserve a mention, things like room-temperature onion rings, limp-and-lukewarm fries and hamburger buns that fail to stand up to their hot and juicy fillings.Let me be clear, the burgers, most of which hover in the $11 to $14 range, are darn good. The service is top notch. The atmosphere, while a bit boisterous, especially on a busy Friday lunch hour with music cranked a tad too much, is as interesting as it is inviting. But who wants a soggy bun? Especially with a well-crafted, beautifully cooked patty made with American Kobe, priced at $16? Another burger of ground Angus, again beautifully cooked and nicely seasoned, came to the table in fairly short order, but it, too, rested on mush.A third burger on a separate visit suffered from what I'll call a lack of bun integrity. It wasn't soggy, but the bread, which was nicely toasted, just fell apart in my hands, forcing me to resort to eating with knife and fork.This is a problem at other restaurants as well, but when you're staking a reputation on your BURGERS, it just makes sense to give customers a better product.Perhaps better bread would withstand the pile of sauteed onions, feta and blue cheese sauces, salsas and other wet ingredients that glam these otherwise dandy burgers made of beef, chicken, turkey, buffalo, lamb, or salmon.The chain advertises occasional exotics such as burgers made of venison, ostrich and crab.Vegetarian burgers are a daily option, along with a bevy of other entrees that include meatloaf, country-fried steak, sirloin and other dishes, including a very nice salad of greens, corn, black bean salsa and other tidbits topped with a beef or chicken patty, $9.99 medium, $10,99 large.The very limited draft and bottled beer menu is bolstered by a decent selection of wines and cocktails. A slice of salted caramel cheesecake made by Tampa's Mikes Pies, split four ways, was gone in under a minute. The dessert menu includes shakes, with or without alcohol, floats and other decadent choices.The restaurant passed a June 4 inspection with flying colors.Square 1 Burgers & Bar is a worthwhile destination for those seeking something different and fun in the upscale burger department that borrows from the Red Robin school of excess, given to marketing its wares using such buzz words as sustainable farming and animal welfare.

[ Eric Pera can be reached at eric.pera@theledger.com or 863-802-7528. ]

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